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Cisco to lay off more than 4,000 workers
Digital networking company Cisco Systems is laying off more than 4,000 employees joining the recent group of tech organisations in an effort to increase profits and push stock prices. The news is another reminder of the job insecurity that is affecting the sector due to the AI push. The layoffs make up 5% of its total workforce of 84,900 and coincide with the company’s latest quarterly results.
Last time in 2022, Cisco had fired 5,000 workers right before it acquired Splunk for $28 billion. The reorganisation is expected to cost an added $800 million. Other companies like Google and Amazon have also had two big instances of layoffs. Cisco is still generating sufficient revenue - it earned $2.6 billion or 65 cents per share, during its fiscal second quarter from October to January, a 5% decrease from the same time period last year. Like others, Cisco is focusing more on its growth areas and investing more in artificial intelligence.
Dating apps encourage ‘compulsive’ use
A lawsuit filed against Match Group, the parent company for Tinder states that dating apps have been designed to make users stuck in them. Tinder, Hinge and other Match dating apps have several addictive features that encourage “compulsive” behaviour, the lawsuit claims. The lawsuit said Match has gamified features which ensure that users are in a “perpetual pay-to-play loop” that pushes profit-making instead of actually helping users find meaningful relationships.
Users then become “addicts” to these apps and buy pricier subscriptions to access special features. The company’s apps “employ recognized dopamine-manipulating product features” to turn users into “gamblers locked in a search for psychological rewards that Match makes elusive on purpose.” Match Group hasn’t responded yet to the claims.
Microsoft says US rivals are using GenAI in cyberattacks
Microsoft said that U.S. adversaries like Iran and North Korea mainly followed by Russia and China have started using generative artificial intelligence to put together cyber attacks. The company said it had worked with their partner OpenAI to locate and disrupt such threats using technology developed by them.
While the methods used were found to be “early-stage” and not “particularly novel or unique,” it was valuable to inform about them to the public as these countries grow their activities to hack networks. Cybersecurity companies have been using AI/ML to detect nefarious cyber activities. But hackers and criminals now use it too since artificial intelligence has become more widespread in the world after the introduction of AI chatbot ChatGPT. The blog posted also listed the instances where these attacks had been attempted and disabled by them. Another report released also stated that generative AI is expected to push harmful social engineering, causing more sophisticated deepfakes and AI voice cloning.
